Hello my name is Jeff and I am new to the ranger forum. I purchased a used 2006 Ford Ranger Sport 4x4 two weeks ago. I have already flushed the engine with Sea Foam and done and oil/filter change. I now intend to flush the transmission and change it's filter. At the same time I am going to replace the transfer case fluid and the front and rear differential fluids. I've been reading some older posts on the forum about doing this and I think I have a pretty good idea about how to go about things. These are my questions: the lines going from the transmission to the cooler, which line is in and which is out? If I want to do a flush and a filter change, which should I do first? I have a Sea Foam I intended to run through the transmission before I get started. The fluids I've purchased for the transmission are a combination of Redline D4 ATF, Valvoline Mercon V, and a Lucas additive. I plan to use the same combination in the transfer case. For the front and rear differentials I have Redline 75W90 gear oil and a Lucas additive. There is a local fabrication shop that I've talked to that has agreed to make a drain plug for me in the transmission pan and the rear diff cover. I don't plan on dropping the front axle so I won't be taking the pan all the way off of the front diff, so no drain plug there. Any advise or warnings anyone has to offer for this project would be greatly appreciated!! Thanks in advance! Oh I probably should have mentioned the the truck has 63,000 miles and I don't know anything about the maintenance history so I am assuming all the fluids are original other than the engine oil.

 

Transmission: Most suggest not to flush but a good, solid drain. As for seafoam through a transmission I say nah. Ive only ever run mercon, ford only ever ran mercon, aint no problem with mercon. If it aint broke dont fix it/change it. Dont forget to clean the magnet and the pan when you drop it

For the front diff, folks here suggest instead of removing the cover that you buy a siphon hand pump to manually suck out the fluids from the fill hole.

 

Ok if I don't do the flush, and just do a solid drain, can you tell me how to find the drain plug in the torque converter? Do I bump the starter with the tranny in neutral until I see it? Or is there a better method?

 

There is no drian plug in the torque converter.The only way to change all the fluid is a flush with 63,000 miles its fine to flush.The problem with flushing comes with high mileage vehicles.If i was you i would take it to a shop that has a BG transmission flush machine.

 

I've uploaded a pic of my truck but it's not shown on my posts. Anyone know why?

 

Uploaded pictures have to come from a photobucket account.
You should have no reason to flush, just drain, you still get 6 quarts out of it more or less

 

There is a Very good reason to flush. What good is getting 6 quarts of fluid out when there's around 14 in the tranny altogether? Leaving mostly old fluid in is whats gonna cause issues down the road. And ford actually recommends the Exact OPPOSITE of what most people do. They recommend a flush only and not a filter change.

 

Dropping the pan will yield 3-4 quarts, drop the vb get another 4, and the last 2 are in the converter. i can tell you for a fact that there is a lot of stuff in the converter you want to get out if possible.

My advice, flush it then change the filter. Especially if its still bright red and doesn't smell burnt.

 

If I do the flush and then the filter change, couldn't I try to save and reuse the fluid I lose when I drop the tranny pan? Drop the vb?

 

If your drain pan is clean you can, I would try and use a coffee filter to strain any dirt that may fall into it.

 

Is there a quick and easy method of eliminating the main radiator from the transmission cooling? I don't like the sound of the coolant mixing with the trans fluid if the radiator fails.

 

Yea, Don't do it. Quick and easy way to overheat the transmission if your not moving. The auxiliary cooler doesn't work unless your going around 20 or over, and the radiator cooler also serves in warming cold transmission fluid.

 

The radiator will not warm the transmission up. It has a thermobypass for when its cold, after it warms up to around 100 degrees it will flow to the cooler.

As long as the cooler is sized correctly and has an electric fan there is no reason to be worried about overheating. Any one with an auto should have a temp gauge for it anyway.

 

To further Blhde's point. If your fan is working properly then it will pull through the aux cooler just as well as it will pull though the radiator

 

You will not be able to partially remove the front diff cover and properly reseal it with the diff in the vehicle. Siphon it out the fill hole or remove the front axle. Also, use Mercon V only in the trans and transfer case. Do not put lucas in anything. It will cause delayed shifts and problems with the torque converter clutch. Do not put it in the axles either. Just throw it away. Make sure to use friction modifier in the rear axle if it is limited slip.

Ford does not recommend using a flush machine on any automatic transmission. The dealer will recommend flushing the system, but Ford will not. If the transmission is flushed, instruct them not to add the BG (or whatever brand) cleaning additives, those cause problems. If you have it flushed, change the filter after the flush and then add your ~4.5 lost quarts. Removing the valve body can be pretty involved if you are inexperienced with transmissions. If you have check ***** fall out, or dont torque it down correctly, you will be in for problems.

 

Ok so I am part way done with my every-fluid change. I performed the change before I read some of the recent posts, so hopefully I won't offend anyone whose advise I did not follow. I haven't done the front of rear diffs yet, however I did check their fluid level and boy am I glad I did. The front diff fluid level was ok, but it did look milky. The rear diff was very low, so I just topped it off for now. The transfer case fluid was very low, only about half of a quart. I started by topping that off with half of a can of Sea Foam for transmissions and half a quart of Valvoline Mercon V. I used the other half of the can of Sea Foam in the transmission. I then drove the truck about 6 miles, making sure to use every gear. I also used both 4x4 high and low. Then I drained the transfer case and refilled it with a combination of Redline D4 ATF and Lucas for transmissions. Next I decided to do the tranny filter change first, before the flush. I dropped the pan and replaced the filter. Watch out! The fluid really does go everywhere if you haven't already installed a drain plug. Once I replaced the pan I then topped the tranny off with 3 quarts of Valvoline Mercon V. Next I pulled the oil line loose from the cooler and stuck it into a 5 gallon bucket. I started the truck, and while the old oil pumped out into the bucket, I replaced it with new fluid through the dripstick tube. I used a combination of Redline D4 ATF, Valvoline Mercon V, and Lucas for transmissions. So far, so good. No noticeable problems except for one, both before and after the fluid changes, the truck seems to pull hard to the left when it is in four wheel drive. Anyone know what might be causing this? I have always been a believer in Lucas so hopefully I won't experience any of the problems that Toreador4X4 suggested that I might. How do I figure out whether or not I have a limited slip in the rear diff? I am pretty certain that I do have the 4.10 gear ratio, there is a sticker on the diff that says 4.10 in one of the fields. My advise to anyone that is planning on doing these same things: Have someone help you. It is, of course, possible to do it by yourself, however a second set of hands would help. Also use a large drip pan or some plastic down before you get started because you're going to get tranny fluid everywhere if you don't have a drain plug already installed. Like I said I haven't done the front and rear diffs yet, but I think I still plan on using Lucas in both. Thanks for everyone's advise!!

 

The thing you want to be careful with transmission flushes is a lot of times dirt is what actually prevent certain crevices from leaking, which in return allow it to function. ATF itself is a very good cleaning detergent, the best way to clean out the trans is to change the fluid often until you're satisfied. Flushing does not provide a guarantee that it will clean everything out, it can actually create problems. So best bet is to change the filter, add new fluid, drive it for 10-15k, do it again.

 

If your diff tag says 4 10 it is open...if it says 4L10 it is a limited slip.

Let us know how it shifts when you have snow

 

Thanks to everyone! Snow is any day now, it has already been as cold as 17 degrees just a few nights ago. I'll let you know how things work out this winter. I read somewhere that the cheapest route to go if want to install a limited slip to just get the stock one from ford. I think I would like to do this at some point. Any suggestions of where to get what I need for reasonable prices? Oh and I have a question about running snow chains with four wheel drive; is it ok to only chain up 2 tires, or should I chain up all four? If only 2 will be okay, should they both go on the front or should they go on the two power wheels? Thanks again to everyone!

 

you should be fine with just 4x4....Hell, me and others used to drive around 2wd trucks with All season tires and sandbags...and we measure our snow in feet.

 

I was thinking about the trans flush and may just drain from the pan, drive a few miles, then drain from the pan and replace the filter. I will have to buy a spare pan seal, but that should clear out most of the gunk.

 

I made some more progress on my every fluid change. Got the rear diff finished but I didn't have any luck sucking the fluid out of the front diff. Can someone direct me to the info I need about dropping the front axle?